Why was the period immediatly after the first world war one of such instability?
The impact of the Treaty of Versailles certainly needs to be considered here: ·Germany had no influence over the terms ·Treaty of Versailles was a vindictive Treaty which punished Germany for its part in the war ·It was a harsh peace, they had to sign it or go back to war – DIKTAT ·Most Germans had not wanted the new government to sign the Treaty, or the war to end, they believed the “November Criminals” (those who stopped the war in 1918) had betrayed Germany ·Being blamed for the Treaty’s agreement weakened the Weimar Republic. ·Army wasn’t loyal, Freikorps, semi-official bands of soldiers tried revolution (Kapp Putsch), they occupied Berlin with the intention of overthrowing the republic. ·In 1921 Germany was in serious trouble – Huge debts, stopped reparations payments. ·End of 1922, France was running out of patience and seized the Ruhr, (Germany’s most important industrial region). Workers went on strike, great inflation and the German economy was bankrupt. ·1923, new government
